There are choirs and choirs. One of the best times of my life was spent with the Malta Choral Society which in those days was directed by Joe Vella; that was till when a conflict of interests connected with my writing reviews forced me to choose between writing and singing. That however is another story.
While a member of the MCS I had a ball and the unique experience of performing works like Faure's ethereal Requiem and Orff's rumbustuous Carmina Burana; something I will never forget. This is why choral music is something very special in my life and I was looking forward to the performance by the New Choral Singers in the Malta Arts Festival on Sunday the 18th in the President's Palace Courtyard. I was not disappointed.
NCS director Robert Calleja, ostensibly a very gifted flautist, is well on the way to becoming a musical polymath. His innate musicianship is no doubt enhanced by a deep assessment and intense study of musical genres which when coupled with his obvious perfectionism transformed each piece sung into little polished gems. The overall performance was balanced and smooth and if it lacked a little bit of oomph at times it was because of this great attention to detail.
Once one gets used to or resigned to competing with fireworks, performing in the Arts Festival becomes fun if you can stomach Ombra mai fu being punctuated by petards. I cannot. Tenor Justin Burwood gave a precise if a little introspective interpretation of this utterly lovely Handel recitative and aria.
I certainly enjoyed the Six Folk Songs by Johannes Brahms whose choral music is not so popular probably for the simple reason that his larger choral works like the German Requiem are so insanely difficult to pull off due to the subtlety of their chromaticsisms and harmonics that make Brahms music so instantly recognisable in whatever form.
There are a considerable number of lovely works for small a cappella choir but this was the first time I had heard the Folk Songs which are deceptively simple as they are full of Brahmsian subtleties which the NCS pulled off with great style.
In fact it was the sense of style which impressed me most about the entire evening. I loved the Maltese pieces best of all; the Tanti Banda ta' Indri with its onomatopoeias, the exuberant L-Imnarja by Pace and the Robert Calleja arrangement of the endearing song Festa by Camilleri.
All three were beautifully performed and the Pace and the Camilleri were achingly familiar especially the Pace piece which must have been used as a signature tune on TV or radio or perhaps rediffusion as it awakened childhood memories that I just cannot put my finger on.
I simply adored the Italian Salad by Richard Genee. Taking the Mickey out of Italian musical terms in a musical joke went down a treat especially when enhanced by bass Albert Buttigieg splendid performance to boot. Copland's I Bought Me a Cat is a subtle play on children's songs like Frère Jacques or the Twelve days of Christmas only infused with that particular transatlantic wryness that conjures up New York to a T just like that gorgeous bluesy music with saxophone obligato.............but I digress.
The New Choral Singers have proved themselves but now need to get their teeth into a major work. I suggested the works of contemporary composer Eric Whitacre whose ‘Cloudburst ‘simply amazed the critics and would be great to perform in the heat of a July night in 2011 wouldn't it?
Failing that why not John Adam's Harmonium or Steve Reich's The Desert Music? We need to convince the Maltese concert going public that the miracles happening in the world of contemporary music at present are real and tangible. I feel that the NCS are up to the challenge and that together they and the festival organisers can change the course of local musical history.